Since I've been working on trademark stuff all day today, I guess I'll write an entry about trademark too.

I have this client, let's call him Leroy, who has a pending trademark application for a "mixed mark" (i.e., a mark having words and design, which is basically known as a design mark in the US). He told me that he wanted to file a word mark and a design mark here in the U.S.

I told Leroy, "Sure, no problem. But just so you know, your design mark will have a 44(d) filing basis and claim the priority date of the filing date of your foreign application, while your word mark will have a 1(b) filing basis and it will not claim priority." Well, Leroy was confused. He thought that he could claim the priority date of the filing date of the foreign application for both of his U.S. applications.

So I did what all good lawyers do. I explained again. Basically, you can't have multiple applications that refer to one application to claim a priority date. Even though a "mixed mark" includes both words and designs, it can't be considered both a word mark and a design mark. When there is anything other than words, like any stylized element, then it's just a design mark.

Sometimes, you'll see a "nominative mark," which would be considered a word mark. Word marks are pretty easy to file because you don't need to upload any images. I have yet to file a sound mark, but I hope to come across one soon.